Vampire Bait
by Tilthesunturnsblack
Summary: If the "vampire bait" plan had gone a little differently... M for future
1. Chapter 1

**Hey all! This is my first Carmilla fic. I have some Glee and Rizzoli & Isles ones if you care to check those out. But I hope you enjoy, and please review! This will be a multi-part piece, but not sure about how many parts just yet.**

Chapter 1

 _"Hey Danny, change of plans. So...don't come. The time isn't right. Just trust me. K thanks! -Laura"_

"What are you doing?" Carmilla quirked an eyebrow at the ancient flip phone Laura was rapidly clicking away on.

"Uh, just texting Danny," Laura stammered. She noticed the wall of flint Carmilla's dark eyes seemed to become at the mention of the red head's name. "You know, just, telling her not to stop by like she was going to. Cause we are having...uh, roommate bonding...I think."

"Oh. Well, good," a smile tugged at the edge of Carmilla's lips and the hard obsidian of her eyes melted into a dark, smoldering ember once again, training themselves on Laura, flickering over and relishing the flush that was creeping into the smaller girl's cheeks. "I didn't much feel like sharing you anyhow." Carmilla's quick fingers grasped Laura's phone and tossed it across the room to her bed. She then reached forward, pulling the rolling chair Laura was sitting on towards her swiftly, letting her free hand fall onto the sheer white fabric just above Laura's knee. As she felt her heart rate increase at Carmilla's touch, Laura watched the vampire's eyes unabashedly flicker to her pulse point, which was surely dilating with blood. The ambiguously hungry look in the brunette's eyes made Laura quickly realize that, with that text message, she had potentially sealed her fate. And she could only hope that the carnal look in Carmilla's eyes would not be the last thing she ever saw...


	2. Chapter 2

Hope you're all enjoying the chapters thus far! Enjoy, and please review!

Chapter 2

"CHAMPAGNE!" Laura screamed. In response, the delicate fingers that had started to trace circles ever so slowly up her thigh snapped away as if her skin had suddenly burst into flames. "I mean… you brought champagne," Laura stammered, scooting the rolling chair closer to the desk with much more clumsy effort than it had seemed to take Carmilla.

"Yes, I did," the brunette deftly swept the bottle that Laura was so adorably struggling with from her grasp, and her deceptively strong hands made quick work of the cork. "Glasses," she commanded, nodding her head in the direction of the obviously genuine crystal flutes she had placed on Laura's desk. The honey blonde nodded her head furiously and surged forward for the glasses, wrapping shaking hands as delicately as she could manage around the brittle stems. She held them out for Carmilla, and was sure she caught the brunette smirking at the way her hands trembled.

"Entirely too tightly wound," Carmilla murmured as she set the bottle down on the desk and retrieved her glass from Laura's hand. "Drink up," she smiled, and touched the glass to her lips, taking a long, slow sip.

 _She's right, time for a little liquid courage, Hollis_. _Might as well be relaxed if I'm going to be eaten alive, right? Oh god…_ Laura thought to herself, taking a much less ladylike and much larger gulp of the softly fizzing liquid. _Holy hippos that is tasty_ , Laura's eyes widened as the taste rolled over her tongue and her eyes landed on the opened bottle, the realization that she was drinking Armand de Brignac, a $300 bottle of champagne, suddenly hitting her.

"That is LUDICROUSLY expensive champagne! Where did you even get that!?" she couldn't help but blurt as she reached for the bottle, scrutinizing the label.

"I have my methods," Carmilla stated blankly, taking another sip. "You know, a party should be a shimmering moment of possibility…and nothing pairs that like a fine champagne."

"Isn't dancing also a huge part of parties? I mean, not that I really go to them…but I feel like there was dancing at the parties in _10 Things I Hate About You_ , which seems to be a pretty reliable source, because it's like Shakespeare, but you know, set in modern times which I always thought—WHOA!"

In the midst of Laura's nervous ramble, Carmilla had finished the rest of her champagne and quietly set down her glass, then, swiftly removed the glass from Laura's hand and replaced it with her own palm, sweeping the smaller girl up and out of the chair and into the close embrace of a waltz.

"Dancing works too," the vampire whispered, and her ruby lips parting into a smile, a smile that Laura uneasily began to realize looked a little…pointier than she had remembered.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Laura's eyes involuntarily grew to the size of very alarmed dinner plates at the sight of the slowly elongating fangs that were being exposed by Carmilla's wide grin. Carmilla had begun to sway Laura back and forth slowly, one hand expertly cradling the honey blonde's, the other pressed firmly against the small of her back. She had thought Laura's total submission to her leading was out of pure, erotic surrender, but the deer in the proverbial headlights look that was now flashing across the smaller girl's face indicated that her assumption was very wrong indeed. Then she felt it. The tips of her finally fully extended canines making contact with her bottom lip.

 _Say goodbye, Hollis. You goofed. She is totally planning to eat you…and not in the lovely way you had so stupidly imagined._ Laura's fatalistic thoughts swept through her brain and she felt her heart take off as if it would explode at the sight of Carmilla's fully elongated fangs. She watched as Carmilla's eyes raked hungrily over her face, and her ruby lips began to droop out of a smile and into a hard line. _This is it_ , Laura exhaled shakily and closed her eyes. There was nothing she could do at this point except try not to get blood splatter all over the quilt her grandmother had made that was draped over her bed. If she didn't struggle, maybe there would be minimal spraying…

But then she was cold. The heat of Carmilla's body had suddenly vanished from her, and a cool draft left by her retreat swept over Laura's frame. The smaller girl cautiously popped one eyelid open. Carmilla was nowhere in sight.

"Carmilla?" she chirped nervously, looking about the room. The bathroom door was shut. Laura took a step towards it, and heard the lock snap tightly into place. Slightly reassured that her life didn't seem to be in any immediate danger, Laura crossed the rest of the distance to the bathroom, and lightly rapped on the door.

"Carmilla? Is everything ok?" She heard the sounds of rummaging in their cabinet under the sink; the distinct clanking of the numerous metallic bottles of Carmilla's hairsprays and gels toppling into each other as the brunette searched for who knows what.

"Everything is peaches, creampuff. Or did my disappearance not make that clear?" the older girl snarled from behind the door.

"Well obviously something is wrong," Laura replied, "I mean we were dancing…or…what was going to be dancing, and then your…well your fangs kind of came out and-"

"I am ABUNDANTLY aware of what just happened," the vampire snapped, "but please, regale me with the embarrassing details once again. Even after 300 years, reliving awkward moments still gives me a real kick!" Carmilla was yelling at this point, and the clanking was reaching a cacophonous level, but Laura's brain missed most of that as she replied,

"Wait…embarrassing details? You're embarrassed?" the only reply for several seconds was the ceasing of the noise and the distinct hissing sound of someone opening a sealed bottle.

"You're so astute, buttercup," Carmilla finally returned. "Of course I'm embarrassed. I wasn't expecting my libido to be so out of control, obviously. I mean we were just dancing…and getting the vampire equivalent to a boner in front of you, when I've yet to even _kiss_ you, wasn't exactly what I had planned for our romantic evening…" her husky voice trailed off, and Laura was suddenly glad for the thick wooden door between them as she was sure she looked like some kind of dumb founded guppy with her mouth dropped open and her brow furrowed in confusion.

"Boner…romantic evening…"she muttered more to herself than to Carmilla, although of course with her ultrasonic hearing the vampire heard her and scoffed,

"You make it sound even more suave. Thank you, really! Uuuugh!" the brunette growled and Laura heard the cabinet door slam shut. "I mean the fact that I had to come in hear and root out my stash because of you! I can _hear_ you gloating out there, Hollis!" Laura shook her heard, trying to somehow rattle the discombobulated pieces of this puzzle into place. _Her stash? Fangs…oh my god! She keeps a stash of blood in our bathroom cupboard (ew) and she had to go in there and drink some because…because of her libido? Did she just…Did I get Carmilla so worked up that she needed some blood to steady herself? Just by dancing? Way to go, Laura! I mean, wait…_ Laura's thoughts began to swirl.

"Carmilla, I didn't mean it like that!" she stated apologetically, "I just got confused…at the thought that you like me that much…or… I mean you probably don't even like me. I just meant that-" the lock snapped back and the bathroom door opened. Carmilla stood in the frame looking sternly at the honey blonde.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"You think I don't like you?" the brunette's voice was flat and low,

and her obsidian eyes looked even harder than normal. Not angry hard, Laura noted…hurt hard.

"Well, I mean…you steal my food, you hook up with girls in my bed when you think I won't be home, you usually only talk to me in order to say something that is, at best, snarky. So, yeah…I thought you didn't like me," Laura finished, fidgeting and looking down at the floor, unable to meet the dark eyes that were growing ever more anguished as she spoke.

"I'm sorry," it was barely above a whisper. "I'm so sorry I ever made you feel that way." The heat was back. The warmth of Carmilla's body was around her again in a flurry of enveloping arms and flowing dark locks. Carmilla's arms slid lightly around her waist and pulled her in close. Laura couldn't help a breathy gasp from escaping as their bodies became flush and the brunette nuzzled her nose gently against the honey blonde's ear to whisper, "I guess you're right, though. I don't like you…I don't think "like" does the way I feel about you justice…" Laura felt her eyes begin to well, and she wrapped her arms tightly around Carmilla's shoulders.

"Carm," she breathed softly, reaching one hand up to stroke the brunette's hair gently, "I had no idea." Laura leaned away slightly, but only to press a soft, lingering kiss to the vampire's cheek. She felt the skin grown warm against her lips, and even with her eyes closed, it was apparent that Carmilla Karnstein was blushing.

"So," Carmilla cleared her throat and as she leaned back to look in to Laura's eyes, the smaller girl could see the vampire trying to control the smile that was threatening to run rampant over her ruby lips, "how about that dance?" Laura laughed and nodded,

"You better lead," and Carmilla's grin broke loose as she moved away only to tick away on the keyboard of Laura's laptop briefly, logging into a Spotify account Laura would never have guessed her having, and hitting play on a playlist that began with the smooth piano of Sam Cooke's "Bring It On Home To Me". Carmilla straightened and turned back around, smiling and extending her hand, lowering in a half bow to the quickly blushing blonde.

 _She still dances like it's 1698_ , Laura noted giddily, and gladly reached out, letting Carmilla take her hand gently in hers, and pull her slowly in, her other hand coming to rest once again on the small of the blonde's back. Laura placed her other hand lightly on Carmilla's shoulder, and the two began to sway. Carmilla lead her slowly at first, swaying side to side, swapping uncharacteristically sheepish glances with the smaller girl. The song began to crescendo, and Carmilla whispered,

"Ready?"

"Ready for wha—aaah!" Laura shrieked as Carmilla spun her away, gliding behind her and letting her hands come to rest on Laura's hips, pressing her front closely to Laura's back. Laura instinctively let her hands fall over Carmilla's and the two girls kept time with their hips as the music slowed. When the song ended and the next began, the vampire firmly grasped one of Laura's hands, spinning her effortlessly back around to face her. This time, Laura looped her hands around the brunette's neck, laying her face against the soft crook of Carmilla's neck as the older girl wrapped her arms snuggly around her waist.

"You know," Carmilla murmured against the top of honey blonde hair, "this isn't the formal pose for a waltz. Much too close, very risqué…" she trailed off as Laura leaned slightly back from her, her hazel eyes locking with the cool black of Carmilla's iris engulfed orbs.

"Carmilla Karnstein, so old fashioned. Who knew?" she quipped, smiling up at the taller girl.

"Well," Carmilla purred, "not entirely old fashioned," and she slowly inclined her head, the gap between their bodies vanishing completely, Laura's hands folded into Carmilla's dark locks. The kiss was the epitome of tenderness. Carmilla's lips softly glancing against the smaller girls; lingering slightly and breaking away in a smile, leaning closer and pressing her forehead to Laura's. Laura's eyes fluttered open dreamily, but when she caught sight of the warm glow spreading across Carmilla's neck and cheeks, that slightly carnal look dancing in the shadows of her eyes once again, her fingers wound tighter in the ebony locks, and she pulled the vampire in for a kiss. A hungry, want-laden kiss.


	5. Chapter 5

Enjoy and please review!

Chapter 5

Carmilla's lips crashed against hers, and a low moan escaped from the brunette's lips. Carmilla had not expected such a fervent response when she had leaned in to kiss the younger girl, but was not about to complain. Her hands gripped Laura's hips tightly and she felt the blonde's fingers knotting into her hair. Their lips danced against each other, and tentatively, Carmilla stroked her tongue along the shorter girls bottom lip, gently asking for entrance. Laura's lips parted in a moan, and Carmilla's wish was granted as she felt the blonde's tongue slide against her own and the fingers in her hair tug slightly.

They kissed feverishly, parting only for breath. Laura had expected Carmilla's lips to be soft, to be full, in the daydreams she would never admit to having about the vampire. But in reality, they were so so much more. They were heaven. She tasted of dark cherry; thickly sweet but crisp, and oh so succulent. There was also a metallic hint that Laura pushed to the back of her mind, knowing exactly what its origin was. Carmilla kissed her as though it had been the only thing she wanted to do for the past 300 years. The eagerness, the passion, the unbridled want Laura could feel in every glance of her tongue, every gentle nip of her bottom lip, was enough to make her weak in the knees.

Carmilla knew she was done for the second their lips touched. The smaller girl, teetered up onto the balls of her feet, her chest pressed against her own (Carmilla could feel the rapid fluttering of her heart) her delicate fingers gliding into her hair, completely losing herself into Carmilla, completely trusting her. Trusting her without a second thought, even through the nightmare Carmilla knew she had been to her. It broke her heart to think of the torment she had caused Laura, but the soft hum of Laura's heart beat, the way her lips danced against Carmilla's, the way her fingers looped into her locks, holding on as if Carmilla were some priceless treasure, all of it, it came rushing through the cracks and sutured three centuries of longing and loneliness. A warm, glowing, honey light, after three hundred years of dark, right there in her arms.

Their lips slowly drifted apart amidst soft lingering kisses and Laura settled back down into the soles of her shoes, no longer on tiptoe to reach the taller girl.

"Wow," Laura breathed, her right hand sliding out from Carmilla's hair to glide lightly to her cheek, cupping it and stroking the pad of her thumb slowly over her cheekbone. Carmilla burst into blush at the tenderness of Laura's touch and the way her warm brown eyes remained steadfastly upon her face the way one watches the sunset, trying to catch every last glimpse of light, every new color and shadow. "You're beautiful," Laura whispered. Carmilla felt her throat tighten, but her lips couldn't help but stretch into a smile, albeit an embarrassed one.

"Well," she purred, sliding forward so her body was flush against the smaller girl's and placing a gentle kiss on her cheek before softly dragging her lips to the shell of Laura's ear, "even thorns look beautiful in the company of roses, cutie." She slowly drew her lips downward and felt the honey blonde's hands come to rest on her shoulders as she placed a deep, languid kiss to the smooth, warm skin of Laura's neck. She felt Laura's head tilt backward, exposing more of her neck, and her fingertips dug slightly into Carmilla's shoulders as the smaller girl gasped breathily.

And then Carmilla heard the most unwelcome sound she could've ever imagined.

"You get away from her!" Danny screamed, and Carmilla snapped her head around to see the doorway filled with the form of the statuesque red head white knuckling a stake. When she looked back at Laura, and at the wide panic in the younger girls eyes, Carmilla both knew they were thinking the same thing; Danny opened the door to see Carmilla, their presumed "evil, murderous vampire" with her mouth on Laura's neck, and Laura, seemingly trying to fend her off at the shoulders.

It was rapidly beginning to seem that this was _not_ going to be the romantic evening Carmilla had so hoped for after all.


	6. Chapter 6

**Do hope you're enjoying and please leave a review!**

 **Chapter 6**

"Danny! It's not what it looks like!" Laura shouted, but she knew the whistling rage that was written all over the red head's face was blocking out any of her protests.

"Did you bite her!? Oh my god, Laura did she bite you!?" Danny bellowed, surging forward, the stake rearing backward above her head, every muscle in her long, sinewy arm pulled taught with anticipation. The advancing of her attacker, the impending threat that someone would try to take Laura from her, set the animal inside Carmilla alive. Her hands loosed from around Laura's waist, and she spun herself to face Danny, barricading the smaller girl's body with her own. Her fangs shot to their full length, and her pupils engulfed her dark irises, blowing her eyes into a black tidal wave of fury. She bared her teeth, and a guttural snarl ripped from her throat. Carmilla felt Laura shrink slightly away from her at the sound, and she saw Danny falter briefly, and the distinct flicker of fear dart across her eyes, but the Amazon continued her charge, taking the last stride into range and swinging the stake down with all her might towards the vampire's chest. Carmilla's hand flew up and caught the plummeting appendage around the wrist, squeezing viciously.

"Carm, no!" Laura shrieked from behind her as the splintering of bones in Danny's wrist caused the stake to clatter to the floor as the red head sank to her knees in pain. But the fire, the rage and venom boiling through her veins, was still at the helm of Carmilla's mind, and she stepped forward, bringing her other hand to close around Danny's throat, pulling her up towards her, drinking in the sugary, thick scent of her fear, so like candy, so enticing to the predator itching within her. She growled menacingly, bringing her face closer to Danny's, arresting her blue eyes with the velvet black of her own, leering with pleasure as the red head's breath hitched when Carmilla slowly licked her lips.

And then she heard a strangled sob.

"Carmilla… _please_ ," the sound cut through Carmilla with more white-hot pain, more soul shattering agony than the stake ever could have. She shook her head, and felt the vice-like grip of the blood lust begin to recede like a fiery tide. Her pupils began to shrink, her fangs slowly retracted, she felt Danny begin to breathe slightly more normally, until her clenched fist let loose from around her wrist and the crushed bones shifted again, and the tall girl cried out in agony, falling back and clutching her arm when Carmilla's other hand unfastened from her throat. As the see of red surrounding her vision ebbed away and her world came back into focus, Carmilla heard the sniffling more pronounced, and caught the sweet, salty scent of tears. She spun around, and Laura flinched when she did so.

"Laura…I…" Laura watched as the vampire's brows knitted tightly together, her eyes began to well and darted between the floor to her own face rapidly, clearly unsure of where to look. She watched as Carmilla shrank into herself; the girl who had just turned into the most expert of predators, who she had watched dominate her intended prey, now looked as though she might shatter into a million pieces if Laura touched her. "Laura, I'm so sorry," and the levees broke, as did Carmilla's voice, as the tears streamed down her cheeks. "I should go. Danny…I'm sorry," Carmilla's deep eyes, twinkling with tears, locked with Laura's once more, sending a sluggish, numbing grief through Laura's core. And then, in a flash of thick black smoke, Carmilla was gone. After several moments succumbed to the sickly, hollow desperation that tore through her chest, the vapors began to part, and Laura skittered to Danny's side, only remembering the other girl's presence when she let out a stifled groan of,

"A little help, please,".


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

After Carmilla vanished, Laura bellowed down the hallway to Perry and LaFontaine, and the pair of red heads came running, first aid kit in tow. As they bandaged Danny up, the injured girl hammered Laura with questions, not to be deterred from her role as savior by something as miniscule as a near death experience.

"What the _hell_ was _that_!?" Danny demanded, gesticulating wildly with her free hand as LaFontaine tried to wrap the other one and Perry attended to the finger-shaped bruising forming on her throat with a bag of frozen peas. "She could've killed you, Laura!" Laura knew Danny's anger was only coming from fear for her safety, so she tried to keep her responses level.

"I just…she has seemed different lately is all. I mean, yeah we know she's a vampire but…she's been changing. She's been nice to me recently, and I just thought maybe if I talked to her, maybe I could find out what was going on without us having to hurt her or take drastic measures, especially considering we don't _actually_ know if Carmilla is the one behind the girls disappearing," Laura sputtered out, her voice laced with apology, not for her choice to abort the plan to ambush Carmilla, but for the fact that her spur-of-the-moment change of plans had gotten Danny hurt.

"Oh, now I get it!" Danny hollered, her eyes steeling and her mouth snapping into a hard line, "so as soon as she comes in wearing some low cut corset and those RIDICULOUS leather pants, and schmoozes you with a little champagne and music, your brain goes out the window and she "might not be the one responsible," when we have pictures of her at every party where a girl has disappeared!?" Laura's face flamed red, half out of rage with Danny's accusation, and half out of embarrassment because she knew Danny was partly right.

"How _dare_ you!" Laura yelled back, all attempts at remaining level headed quickly abandoned. "You don't know her at all! And don't act like cool, collected intellect is the only thing controlling your actions, _especially_ when it comes to Carmilla! Who was the one that was suddenly all about stakes and ropes and holy water when she heard the term "seduction eyes" being applied to how Carmilla looks at me!? Yeah, maybe I was a little impulsive, Danny, but so were you! Not to mention, you tried to kill her tonight! We haven't discussed the fact that YOU attacked Carmilla, not the other way around! She could've snapped you like a twig, and me to boot for witnessing it, but she didn't! Because she's not a bad person, she's not a monster, she didn't _want_ to hurt anyone tonight, which isn't something I can say about you right now!" Tears were now streaming down the honey blonde's face, and she burst out of her own room, leaving the three red head's perched on her bed, all shocked into utter silence.

Laura fled down the hallway, surpassing the creaky, jolting "hellevator" in favor of the safer bet of the stairs. Taking them three at a time, she quickly reached the bottom and burst out the back door of the dormitory onto the expansive back lawn that bled out into the forest. The cool night air chilled the damp tracks of her tears, and she wiped them away furiously. Without any plan, any purpose, she walked toward the tree line, knowing only that she wanted to distance herself as much as possible from everything that had happened tonight.

The shadows of the towering pines sprawled out in menacing black spears along the grass, growing longer the closer she came to the forest edge. She broke the hedge line and her pace slowed as the sounds of the campus began to fade, and as the dappled moonlight provided a less than clear path over the gnarled roots and jagged rocks smattered across the forest floor.

After about fifteen minutes of pushing onward in a straight line, she slowed when she came to a large, moss-covered boulder. Clambering up on it, she pulled her dress tightly about her legs and tucked her knees to her chin, looking up through the branches at the broken moonlight, counting stars aimlessly.

Until she heard the distinct snapping of twigs under steadily approaching footsteps.


	8. Chapter 8

**What I thought was going to be a brief little one or two shot has somehow taken a hold of me, and is becoming something I'm really enjoying writing. As I said, who knows how long it will go on but thanks for reading, hope you enjoy, and please review!**

 **Chapter 8**

The serenity of the forest, the comfort of being alone rushed out of Laura with the rapid exhale of her breath as she felt her chest constrict in fear. The steady steps crunched closer, and Laura maneuvered to her feet atop the boulder, slowly spinning, eyes darting in and out of every shadow, every silver patch of moonlight. Then the footsteps stopped.

"You're wrong, you know," the voice below her droned, evenly and almost bored, but the shock of it suddenly right next to her sparked a scream that Laura quickly stifled, when she realized the voice had come from Will, leaning casually against the boulder below her, running a hand lazily through his wavy brown locks.

"For cripes sake, Will!" Laura spat, "You almost gave me a heart attack! What are you even doing out here anyway?" Will turned to her and smiled his straight, winning grin that seemed to work so well on all of the sorority sisters around campus.

"Zeta duty to protect hotties in need, remember?" he trumpeted, snapping to attention and giving an over exaggerated salute. Laura scoffed and sat back down on the boulder. "We heard a bunch of hullabaloo coming from your room, so Kirsch and I decided to check it out. Naturally, the giant puppy decided he needed to look after Danny, so he sent me out here to find you. Which, I might add, was not that hard. You know, if you're going for the whole seclusion thing, maybe don't wear a snow white dress in the middle of a dark forest," he mocked gently, his eyes squinting at the still damp trails down Laura's cheeks.

"Yeah, next time I run into the forest at night I will be sure to take that into consideration," Laura responded, rolling her eyes and angling away from Will. It wasn't that she didn't like will…well, she didn't really like Will, he was kind of creepy, but she would've turned away from just about anyone at this particular moment. All she had wanted was to be left alone to process, but clearly that wasn't going to happen.

"Wait," Laura spun back around, "you said "you're wrong," wrong about what? What are you talking about?" Will turned to face her fully and placed his hands casually against the mossy stone.

"You're wrong about Carmilla," he stated coolly. He smiled at Laura's confusion. "Like I said, we heard most of the fight in your room, and you're wrong. Carmilla Karnstein absolutely _is_ a monster," he snarled the last bit lowly, and a shiver ran through Laura's body at the steel in his voice and the flint in his eyes.

"Wha—what do you know about Carmilla?" Laura shot back, her attempt at bravery undercut by the tremor in her voice as the dark haired boy pulled himself effortlessly up onto the boulder with her and she scooted back slightly in a mottled crab walk, doing her best to distance herself without snagging her dress or tumbling off the other side.

"Oh, I know more about Carmilla than you, that is certain," he continued to leer at her, settling himself into a crouch, his elbows resting on his knees and his fingers clasped neatly. "Carmilla is my sister, did she not tell you?" He grinned widely at the instant and utter confusion that covered Laura's face.

"How is she…her parents died like 300 years ago…are you a...?" Laura trailed off quizzically, not even knowing what question to ask. Will gave a bright laugh; the rapidity with which he could shift from jovial to severe was incredibly unsettling to Laura.

"Well, not technically related. But the same woman made us, which, in the vampire world, is as close as it gets to brother and sister," he answered bemusedly, letting it sink in for Laura.

 _Well, if her going full Lestat on Danny wasn't enough proof, I now know with all certainty that not only is Carmilla a vampire, but so is Will…so is Will, Laura. The boy who is a foot away from you, alone, in the middle of the night…oh god, this makes him so much more creepy_. Laura gulped as her inner monologue began to fly to similarly fatalistic thoughts to the ones she had had at the beginning of the night, before Carmilla had made her intentions clear. Laura was sure Will could see the fear written on her face as she processed the information, and he smiled and casually waved a hand at her, as if casually brushing away her concerns.

"Oh, don't worry," he smiled, "I'm not going to hurt you. Well, not yet anyway. But, if you keep getting in the way of our mother's plans with those missing girls, I won't be able to guarantee anything," his voice began to drop once again and the hardened, dead look returned to his dark eyes. "And make no mistake _little nerd hottie_ ," he taunted, "Carmilla _is_ a monster. What happened tonight, that's just the beginning. It will be nothing compared to the way she will rip through your life if you pursue this foolish little crush. A lion cannot love a lamb. Take my advice," he began to rise to his feet, "stay away from Carmilla. She will only hurt you," he turned his back, and jumped down off the boulder. "And if she doesn't," he turned toward her once again and smiled broadly, " _I will_." And with a flash of black smoke, Will vanished, and the only thing Laura was left with was the snare drum thrumming of her heart in her ears.


	9. Chapter 9

**Please review!**

 **Chapter 9**

As soon as the vapors had cleared and Laura was sure, or as sure as she could be, that Will was gone, she leapt off the boulder, hiked up the hem of her dress to her ankles, and began sprinting out of the forest the way she had come. When she made it to her dorm room, the hands on her watch were reading 11:45, and the hall was appropriately quiet for such a late hour on a weekday. Taking a deep breath and preparing herself ( _yeah right, she was totally unprepared_ ) to deal with the fallout with Carmilla, she slowly and quietly turned the knob to their room, squeaking the door open and poking her head through the crack, letting her eyes adjust and flick about the darkened room.

It was thoroughly empty. The room looked completely undisturbed since she had left it. Well, actually, it looked cleaner than she had left it. _Typical Perry_ , Laura smiled to herself, slipping off her shoes and her dress, rummaging through her drawers to find some pajamas. After finding some cozy flannel shorts and a simple black t-shirt to slip on, she went to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and slid into bed, no sight nor sound of Carmilla. Carmilla's bed was sloppily pulled together as it was every morning after she "made" it, and the champagne glasses lay empty on the desk accompanied by the bottle and its remaining (now flat) contents. Laura pulled the covers up close to her chin, trying to ward out the aching memories of the evening that were slowly creeping out of the flutes of champagne and into her mind's eye, as the dark she had rushed outside to for solace now became thick and choking in the confines of the shared room. She clamped her eyes shut and took deep breaths, waiting for the release of sleep.

The distinct sound of the doorknob turning snapped her to attention.

Laura's eyelids fluttered open, staring intently at the ceiling, hoping it would give her some kind of indication as to what to say, what to do. Alas, it stayed a blank white ceiling, and she stayed motionless and wracked with nerves under her covers. She heard Carmilla's gentle footsteps, apparently trying to slip in without waking up her roommate. She watched from the corner of her eye as Carmilla made her way to the bathroom, and Laura heard the sink running and Carmilla fervently brushing her teeth (Laura told her a thousand times that she was brushing too hard and she was going to cause gum damage…although now she understood Carmilla laughing her off every time) and then the brunette slipped back into the main room and towards the dresser. Laura watched as she rifled through the top drawer, pulling out sleeping clothes just as the smaller girl had done. However, when Carmilla (assuming Laura was fast asleep) shed her corset to pull on her t-shirt, Laura could not help the gasp that left her throat.

The silvery streak of moonlight that bled from between the gap in their curtains bathed Carmilla's naked upper body. The shadow of the slight valley that ran down the center of her toned abdomen blended into the darkness cast by the light playing over her exposed breasts. Laura choked back her gasp and tried to play it off into a sleepy grumble as she rolled onto her side, away from her half-naked roommate. She could feel the fire engulfing her neck and chest, and was (slightly) ashamed of the gentle heat she felt coiling in her lower abdomen.

"Laura?" she heard Carmilla ask quietly, prodding to see if she was awake without actually waking her if she wasn't. Laura's brain raced. _Should I answer? Should I just keep pretending I'm asleep? Does she have a shirt on yet? I kind of hope not…Not now, Hollis! Ok, maybe I should answer her. Maybe she is just as confused as I am about this whole thing._ Laura rolled over in her bed, having decided to answer her roommate.

"JESUS CHRIST!" Laura shrieked and bolted upright as upon rolling over she was greeted with a pajama clad Carmilla standing right at the edge of her bed. Carmilla jolted back,

"Oh, Laura, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you! I was just trying to see if you were awake or not, and I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have…" Carmilla apologized rapidly, her eyes begging forgiveness and her voice starting to quake. Laura quickly realized that the brunette was not just apologizing for waking her, but for everything that had happened tonight, as quiet tears rolled down her cheeks. Laura extended her hand,

"Carm, come here, it's ok," Carmilla looked up at her from under her thick lashes, her dark, cavernous eyes watering and quizzical.

"You're…you're not afraid of me?" she murmured. Laura smiled as warmly as she knew how, and extended her hand further.

"Of course not," she stated, and reassuringly squeezed the delicate but strong fingers that tentatively laid themselves against her own. She grasped Carmilla's hand and pulled her towards the bed, patting the free space next to her with the other hand. Carmilla locked eyes with her, her brows pulled anxiously together, and Laura knew she was asking her if she was sure. Laura knew it was more than if she was sure she wanted Carmilla in her bed. It was if she was sure she even wanted Carmilla in her life. Looking into the deep, velvety black of Carmilla's eyes, it struck Laura that, without a doubt, were she to say "no", were she to make it clear that she was afraid, or unsure in any way, she was certain she would never see Carmilla again. Carmilla would be gone the next morning, without a word, without a note, without a trace that she had ever been apart of Laura's life. Because, Laura knew, Carmilla would never hurt her.

So, of course, she was sure.

She pulled the blankets down and tugged on the brunette's arm gently, and the levee of anxiety broke, and a smile of relief washed over Carmilla's face as she climbed into bed next to Laura. The two scooted themselves down under the covers, both flat on their back, and both, Laura knew, desperately consulting that all-knowing white ceiling for answers.

Laura heard the sharp intake of breath and felt Carmilla's body go ridged as she turned on her side and draped an arm over the vampire's body and snuggled in close to her.

"Laura, I don't know if this-" the older girl began to protest quietly.

"I do," Laura spoke firmly. "I know," she waited for Carmilla to settle, to be sure she was listening, "No one gets to tell me what I do and don't know anymore. What's safe, and what isn't. I know who you are, Carmilla. And I know that being with you, yeah maybe it isn't safe. Maybe it isn't easy. Hell, maybe it's the stupidest thing I have ever done," she felt Carmilla chuckle slightly, "But it's what I want. _You're_ what I want, who I want. And that's all I need to know," Laura let her last soft, but certain words drift into the quiet dark, waiting for any response, any indication from Carmilla.

"Come here, creampuff," the words cracked out over what Laura knew was a muffled sob, as the older girl rolled onto her side to wrap both arms tightly around the smaller girl, pulling their bodies flush together, tucking Laura's head into the crook of her neck, and placing her lips softly to the crown of honey blonde hair. Carmilla felt the smaller girl smile into her and lean down slightly to place a soft kiss to the hollow of Carmilla's throat. The vampire kissed the silky blonde hair once more, and as she felt the breathing of the warm body in her arms begin to slow and even out into sleep, she too drifted off. It was the most restful, peaceful sleep she had had in 300 years.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Laura awoke to the warmth of Carmilla's skin against her lips. Her head had remained tucked into the side of the vampire's neck for most of the night, and it was that same blissful circumstance that she awoke to. Laura gently lifted her head, gazing quietly at the still sleeping brunette. Carmilla's long lashes fluttered delicately in her sleep, and Laura giggled to herself at how her bottom lip drooped slightly open as she slept. Carmilla lay flat on her back, her right arm flung out to the side and her left arm pulled over her stomach, resting atop Laura's arm that held her close.

Laura glanced over to her desk, and her alarm clock read 9:30, much later than she would normally have slept herself during a weekday, but still hours before the usual time Carmilla would rouse grumpily from her side of the room. Laura didn't have class until 3 that afternoon, so she was happy to lounge in bed as long as the sleepy vampire wanted. However, the younger girl quickly became bored with that plan, and against her better judgment decided it wouldn't hurt Carmilla to wake up "early" for once in her very long life. Laura slowly dipped her head back down to its former position above Carmilla's shoulder, and she gingerly leaned in and ever so lightly brushed her lips against the smooth, ivory skin of Carmilla's neck. The vampire remained soundly asleep. Once again, Laura's lips were greeted with the soft, warm skin, this time just below the brunette's jawbone, and with a little more pressure and longevity. Much to Laura's chagrin, Carmilla remained comatose.

 _Good lord, it's like trying to wake the dead! Hehe, good one, me. So punny. Anyway, on with a new plan to wake this girl up…_ Laura scooted herself higher in the bed, this time much less concerned that her movements might wake Carmilla, who apparently slept like a log. She brought her lips close to the shell of the vampire's ear,

"Carm, wake up," she whispered, promptly taking the vampire's earlobe gently between her teeth, giving a slight tug, and concluding with a deep, lingering kiss to Carmilla's neck. That did the trick. Carmilla's eyelids fluttered open, and her sleepy brown eyes immediately began to search confusedly about the unfamiliar side of their room. Her eyes darted over and caught sight of Laura lying on her side next to her, propped up on one elbow and grinning to beat the Cheshire cat.

"Uuuuugggh," Carmilla groaned dramatically, rolling over and into a giggling Laura, burying her face in the bright yellow pillow that Laura's elbow rested upon. "Laura, it's essentially dawn. Why? Why must you be a morning person?" she groaned animatedly, growling for effect when her complaints were answered with that glowing laugh that made her heart swell.

"Carmilla, it's 9:30. Dawn was about 4 hours ago, but good try, sleepy head," Laura snuggled back into bed so that she was lying on her side, face to face with the mock-irritated Carmilla. "Besides," she crooned, reaching her arm under the covers and gently looping it around Carmilla, splaying her fingers pointedly on the exposed small of Carmilla's back, "I thought you would've enjoyed the way I woke you up." Laura watched the vampire's eyes briefly go wide with surprise, but soon begin to smolder with that familiar heat of the evening before.

"Mmm, well, cupcake," Carmilla simpered, leaning closer, bringing her lips impossibly close to Laura's without touching them, "I am open to persuasion on the benefits of being a morning person. Perhaps you could convince me," she smirked as she watched her sultry tone take effect; Laura inclined her neck unconsciously towards Carmilla, her eyes fluttering closed, and her lips parting with a breathy exhale. After several seconds of stillness, Laura's eyes snapped open in curiosity, and her bottom lip jutted out in exaggerated disappointment when she saw Carmilla smirking at her, being an obvious tease.

 _Well,_ she thought to herself, _I guess I will just have to take measures into my own hands and wipe that smirk right off her gorgeous, full, delicious looking…focus, Hollis!_ Carmilla's brow began to knot as she watched a plethora of emotions and thoughts silently flit across the smaller girls face. However, the confusion was suddenly jolted out of her, along with all the air in her lungs, when Laura's lips came crashing against hers.


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry not sorry. Please review! And enjoy!**

 **Chapter 11**

 _I love mornings_. Carmilla didn't think her conversion to being a morning person would occur quite so rapidly, but the way Laura's lips hungrily enveloped her own and the feeling of the blonde's fingers on the small of her back, urging their bodies closer, had quickly boarded her onto the bandwagon. She reached up, tangling her fingers in the flowing honey blonde locks, and parting her lips to kiss Laura deeper. Laura's hungry mouth swallowed her gasp when she felt the hand that had been pressed against the small of her back, shamelessly slide lower and grab a firm handful of her ass. The smaller girl didn't' relent; she slowly rolled her hips towards Carmilla and bit firmly upon the vampire's lower lip. Carmilla groaned deeply, her fingers tightening in the silky locks and her other arm coming between their bodies, stroking down the front of Laura's black t-shirt, sliding her fingertips under the hem and scraping her nails lightly against the blonde's taught stomach. Laura let out a breathy gasp at the feeling of the brunette's fingers so close, yet so far from where she so desperately needed them. She slid her tongue deftly into Carmilla's mouth, stroking languidly against the other girl's tongue,

"Carm," Laura pleaded breathily, "less clothes. _Now_ ," she demanded. Not needing to be told twice, Carmilla grasped the hem of Laura's black tee and pulled it in a fluid motion over the girl's head, Laura giggling slightly at her eagerness. Carmilla's hands reached toward the hem of her own shirt, but the sight of Laura topless for the first time, left her fingertips numbly scrambling at the fabric and her lips parting in a lust-laden moan.

"Uh, Carm," Laura prodded, jerking her chin up towards Carmilla, "your turn." Carmilla shook the fuzz out of her brain with a quick side-to-side snap of her head, and quickly removed her own shirt. She tossed it aside and was surging forward to bring her skin, prickling with heat, in contact with Laura's once again, when a firm hand on her chest held her back.

"Those too," Laura cast her eyes down to Carmilla's lavender shorts (or underwear that she passed off as shorts, based on the complete lack of length) and a devilish smirk rolled over her lips at the strangled squeak that escaped Carmilla as Laura's fingertips began their decent. Carmilla's head fell back at the pure ecstasy of Laura's fingertips, streaking trails of liquid fire over her skin; coursing down the valley of her breasts, a thumb stroking over the defined muscles of her abdomen, ghosting over her navel, and finally hooking into the top of her shorts. Laura began to pull them gently down, exposing the muscled line below Carmilla's hipbone. Laura looked up, devouring the lust emanating from Carmilla's blown pupils. She felt her stomach tighten at the way Carmilla pulled her own bottom lip between her teeth, Laura knew to bite back a moan.

And then the lips weren't biting back anything, but instead spewing some rather choice curses,

"Fucking shit, god damn it!" Carmilla cried, reaching back for her discarded shirt and clutching it over her exposed chest. The picture of bewilderment, Laura's head snapped around to the doorway, where Carmilla's eyes were locked with a blaze that Laura was concerned may actually set fire to their large oak door. However, the door was swung open, and in its stead, stood a mortified Danny.


	12. Chapter 12

**This chapter is a little longer than usual. Please enjoy and leave a comment**

 **Chapter 12**

Laura let out a squawk equivalent to that of some kind of dinosaur-seagull crossbreed, and her fingers flew from the hem of Carmilla's shorts as if the garment had been filled with scorpions. She dove under the covers, the heat from her cherry red face radiating throughout her body.

"DOES NO ONE IN THIS ENTIRE FUCKING SCHOOL UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OF KNOCKING!?" Laura heard Carmilla roar, and her free hand tucked under the covers, prodding Laura with her crumpled up t-shirt.

"Oh my god!" Danny yelped, slapping her hands over her eyes, but promptly yelping and dropping the one that was wrapped in a large white bandage to support her broken wrist. Leaving one eye exposed, Danny clamped it shut, and began to spin towards the door. However, in her embarrassed haste (and, due largely to her eyes being closed) she overshot the spin and instead hightailed it directly into the large armoire that housed Carmilla and Laura's jackets. The sharp corner of the wooden structure cracked soundly against Danny's face, and sent the redhead reeling backwards.

Laura had no sooner poked her head through the top of her shirt (and internally pouted as she saw Carmilla was also now fully clothed) than she turned to see Danny, backpedaling until she bumped against the wall, and now clutching her forehead. Laura rolled her eyes, thoroughly irritated, but still needing to make sure the tall girl was ok. Although she may screw up on occasion (more frequently so in the last two days), Laura knew that Danny cared about her and her actions always came from a place of good, whether it be misguided or not.

"Danny, are you hurt?" Laura asked, climbing out of bed, ignoring the very purposefully audible grumble of _I fucking hope so_ , from the vampire slumping down into the bed and crossing her arms huffily behind her.

"I think I might be bleeding," Danny groaned, pulling the hand away that had been nursing her forehead. Her palm was stained scarlet.

"Oh my gosh, Danny!" Laura cried, quickly darting into the bathroom to grab a towel and dampen it in the sink before hustling back past a thoroughly pissed off Carmilla to tend to Danny. Laura stood on tiptoes and reached up, gently dabbing away the blood that was trickling down Danny's forehead and nose. The redhead's pupils looked slightly larger and more unfocused than usual.

"Danny, I think you might have a concussion," Laura sighed, flipping the towel over to the non-bloodstained side and then returning to stopping the flow from Danny's cranium.

"That requires having a brain," Carmilla jabbed from her perch on Laura's bed. "And, generally, people with a brain knock before entering a room! Or is that not a component of social etiquette among the Amazons?"

"Oh, shut up, Morticia," Danny spat, using her un-bandaged hand to flip her middle finger at a glowering Carmilla. "You know, literally _none_ of this would be happening if you hadn't barged your way into Laura's life," the redhead countered, her eyes locking firmly with Laura's, even though her words were pointed toward the vampire. "You sweep in here, all red lipstick and angst, and you just tear through Laura's life, taking what you want. Her cookies, her bed, her sanity, apparently, without even a consideration to how your actions effect her," Danny finished, her words sure and strong, as her slightly fluttering green eyes locked earnestly with Laura's soft, brown ones.

"So concerned with Laura's life," Carmilla said, her voice was low and restrained, but Laura could hear the edge, hear the poison ebbing at the levees. "You think I'm the one without consideration?" Carmilla asked, a smirk creeping over her lips as she climbed out of the bed and slowly walked towards Danny and her make-shift nurse. "No, Red, that's you," she growled, her voice dropping low and her eyes pinning Danny to the wall. "Yes, maybe I have taken some stupid, material things from Laura like cookies and a pillow, but I have _never_ taken her freedom, her right to make a choice. I didn't convince her the only course of action was to try and kill her roommate. I didn't barge in here and try to murder _you_ when I thought you might have feelings for Laura. I let her do what she wanted. Even if that had meant her picking you. If it had meant watching her be with you," Laura saw Carmilla swallow tightly around those words, her heated dark eyes faltering briefly and her voice wavering, but only for a second. "I wouldn't have done anything, because it's Laura's choice. It's Laura's happiness. And let's be real, Gigantor. That's what this is all about. Laura didn't pick _you_ ," Carmilla added emphasis onto the last word, her nose now inches from Danny's, Laura standing between them, her nervous eyes flicking back and forth between the fuming women. Danny's eyes shot from Laura to Carmilla nervously for a brief second, until her eyes squinted, her lips pursed in a hard line, and she stepped towards Carmilla, closing the distance, her chest roughly bumping the smaller girl's, who didn't give an inch.

"Maybe that's true. Maybe I'm selfish. Maybe I'm overly protective. But at least Laura knows the real me," Danny hissed. Laura had never seen the redhead so heated, so willful in a verbal argument. Danny usually proved her point with muscle, with sweeping physical gestures, and so the pointed words emanating from her were a tactic, Laura knew, she was only adopting based on the physical reminder of her bandaged wrist about how well physical confrontations between her and Carmilla would go. She continued her onslaught, "At least Laura knows all of my faults, all of my shortcomings. But not you," now Danny was sneering, with a glint in her eye that Laura could only describe as menacing. The small girl's eyes darted to Carmilla, and her heart dropped in anticipation, (of what, she didn't know) when she found the deep, dark gaze was already clinging to hers. "Yeah, we all know you're a snide, sarcastic asshole," Danny pursued viciously, "but I happen to know a little more. I had a chat with your mother early this morning, and I have to say, the biography of Carmilla Karnstein is a lot more grim than I think any of us, especially poor Laura, would have originally expected," Danny's words snapped to a halt, and she straightened herself proudly, as if waiting in the wings for the havoc to unfold.

"Your mother?" Laura murmured, her eyes back on Carmilla again, whose now watering orbs had not drifted from her face. "Carm, what is she talking about?" Laura queried quietly, her voice rattling with the fear of the impending answer.

"The Dean," Danny trumpeted, "the Dean is Carmilla's mother. The one responsible for the missing girls. Although, not without Carmilla's help." There was that dropping again. That sickly plummeting of Laura's heart. The sudden lack of foundation, the hopeless, falling of a plane in an air pocket. The fleeting feeling of fear licking at the back of your neck as the seatbelt constricts around your guts, and every time you know it's the end, and it never is. And you feel silly when you level out, and no one has stirred, only your insides. This was the state of Laura's heart. An organ in turbulence and a soul in free fall, but only for a second. And when her mind leveled out once again and the fog lifted from over her eyes and her gaze returned to Carmilla, standing there pleading silently before her, she felt just as silly.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Carmilla was so close to her. Yet, all Laura could feel was the cold, creeping in of a void, a distance from her. She looked at those deep, longing eyes, the trembling lips that she had heatedly kissed only moments ago. They were all familiar, she knew this, but her brain only registered a startling lack of recognition. The shocking jolt when you smile and wave frantically at someone on the street, only to realize, under their affronted gaze, that it is not who you thought it was, and you have made yourself look a fool. Carmilla's plea broke the silence,

"Laura," her voice shook, her hand reached forward and grasped one of Laura's delicately, waiting for the small blonde girl to pull back. She didn't, but she didn't squeeze back. Her hand stayed limp, her eyes stayed unfocused, she didn't move and didn't speak. "Laura, I'm so sorry. I should've said something sooner but…but I…how was I supposed to even tell you about the monster that I am. And she…she's so much worse. She's done things to me, things to make me help her…it's not an excuse, I know, but-"

"Get out," Laura's mouth moved numbly at first, her eyes still a blank, unwavering slate.

"Laura, please," Carmilla's voice cracked as she begged, "just let me talk to you. Let me explain." Laura's eyes moved from their fixed position on some point of space far beyond Carmilla to finally register on the brunette's anguished face,

"Not you," she mumbled, and her eyes turned slowly to Danny, "Get out," she repeated, just as slow, just as evenly. The red head's eyebrows knit together in confusion.

"But, Laura," she objected, "I can't leave you here with her! Look at what she's been doing! She's just as bad as we thought!" Laura's eyes remained locked on Danny.

"Get out!" it was no longer quiet, it was a shout, it was desperate. "This is what you wanted. Right, Danny? You did it. So get out!" The tears flowed freely from Laura's eyes now, and her voice teetered chokingly on the edge of a sob. Danny straightened herself, and her formerly gloating eyes hardened.

"All right. But don't come crying to me to fix it when she breaks your heart. A monster like _that_ ," she spat at Carmilla, her eyes stabbing towards the brunette whose downcast eyes didn't even lift in acknowledgement, "can never love you." With that, Danny snatched the towel out of Laura's hand and clutched it to her head as she made her way out the door, slamming it behind her. Laura's eyes snapped shut in the shock wave of Danny's exit, and she pulled in a deep breath.

Carmilla finally looked up. Laura's eyes had drifted shut in Danny's absence, and Carmilla watched her simply breathe in and out, and Carmilla's insides screamed for the honey blonde to say something, anything. After what seemed like years, the warm brown eyes drifted open, shimmering with tears, and found Carmilla's searching gaze.

"I _trusted_ you," the words slipped from her lips in a whisper, a gentle wind rustling through the trees, belying the hurricane howling in its wake. _Don't say that, say anything but that_ , Carmilla's heart cried. Now she was wishing for silence again, for the calm before the storm instead of the cylcone of regret, guilt, anguish that was terrorizing her heart in the wake of Laura's quiet. "I talked to Will, you know," Laura continued, her eyes locked firmly on Carmilla, pinning the brunette under her gaze. "Last night, when I ran out into the woods, after the whole thing, he came and found me. He told me you were his sister, he told me what he was, and he told me you were a monster," Laura's words were quiet and steady, but that last one, it screamed at Carmilla in her own voice, it bounced around the walls of her brain and seeped lower, pooling slowly in her heart; _Not her. Don't let her use that word_ , Carmilla's heart ached, but she stayed silent, letting Laura finish, bracing herself for the cruel words of fear, of loathing, that she had heard so many times before. "But I didn't believe him," Laura whispered, and Carmilla's eyes brightened slightly, "I didn't believe him because I love you-" Carmilla wasn't sure if it was the sudden snapping up of her head or the gasp that jumped from her lips that cut off Laura's words, but she was thankful for the pause, as she would no longer have been able to hear the smaller girl over the hammering of her heart in her own ears at those three little words.

"You what?" Carmilla interrupted. It was quiet, but laced with all of the surprise and wonder that she felt fluttering, trying to break through the surface of that black mere of anguish she felt suffocating the cavity of her chest. Laura looked at her, and something flitted across the smaller girl's eyes in the realization of what she had just said. Her lower lip began to quiver, and her eyes welled further, but she held back the tears as she spoke.

"I love you," she said it again. But this time, there was no light, no spark. Instead, the words echoed with the rushing emptiness of a dark cavern. And all the light, all the warmth Carmilla had ever seen, ever felt in her life, seemed to be vanquished from existence, erased from memory, as if it had never happened at all. As if she had been born and nursed of nothing but dark, nothing but cold, nothing but emptiness.

"That's what hurts the most," a tear rolled down Laura's cheek, her voice quavering and her fingers that Carmilla still held, had begun to desperately grasp her own. Whether Laura knew she was doing it or not, Carmilla wasn't sure. "I love you, and it's _awful_. It's like…like I gave you this piece of me, and, you could've just given it back, you could've just walked away. But you took it, and you used it, you used it for horrible things, and then you tore it to pieces. And now there's a hole in me…" Laura's words disappeared amongst breathy sobs, and her hand retracted from Carmilla's to wipe her eyes. She yanked her gaze away from the brunette's hollow, dark eyes, staring emptily back at her, and cleared her throat "I have to go now, I'm going to stay with a friend. I don't know when I will be back," Laura muttered, her voice barely holding together as she turned away and grabbed her keys, her backpack, stuffed some clothes into it (but didn't bother to dress herself further than her pajamas) and walked out the door in one fell swoop, closing it tightly behind her.

"I love you too," the words floated away from Carmilla, uselessly muffled against the door, as she sank onto Laura's bed and her quickly falling tears were caught by a buttercup-yellow pillowcase.


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long, but I'm back into the swing of things and should be posting chapters much more regularly. Please enjoy and please review!**

 **Chapter 14**

Laura felt the slamming of the door behind her mirrored in a shuddering sob that ripped through her body the instant she knew Carmilla could no longer see her. She stumbled blindly through the tears down the hallway, and towards the door she knew belonged to Perry. She knocked as hard as she could muster through the shaking sobs that wracked her body. The door swung open and the wide, Stepford-wivesian grin that Perry always had plastered on her face quickly pressed into a hard frown when she saw the small, disheveled girl standing in the opening.

"Oh, sweetie," she murmured, taking Laura's backpack from her and tossing it at Laf who was coming into view behind her, and cupping Laura by the elbow with the other hand and gently guiding her into the room. Perry closed the door behind them and guided Laura to have a seat on her crisply made bed.

"What happened?" Laf asked gently, setting Laura's bag down and taking a seat next to the honey blonde.

"Carm…" Laura murmured between sobs, the two redheads exchanged a meaningful look. "I love her," Laura choked out.

"Um, isn't that a _good_ thing?" Laf probed, their eyebrows knotting quizzically.

"LaFontaine, clearly something else has happened. Most people don't turn into a sobbing mess over _good_ things," Perry replied sternly, settling herself on the other side of the small girl and stroking her blonde hair gently. "What happened, dear?" Perry questioned softly, reaching into her pocket with her free hand and producing a tissue which she began gently blotting Laura's tears with.

"The Dean is her mother," Laura choked out, fresh tears cascading down her cheeks, much to Perry's dismay, as the fresh wound of this knowledge ached at having to verbalize Carmilla's betrayal. Laura sniffled and waited for their shocked responses, their horrified gasps, their protests of anger, but was instead met with silence. She looked up curiously and watched as the two redheads exchanged solemn, knowing looks.

"Oh, that's fantastic!" Laura moaned, slapping her hand over her eyes and falling back dramatically onto the bed. "Why am I always the last person to know about the things MY roommate is doing!?" she wailed, not really expecting a response at her somewhat rhetorical question, but not shocked that she was getting one anyway.

"Weeeelll," Laf began to muse, quizzically stroking their chin, the cogs of their voracious brain visibly spinning, "it could be that you've simply been blocking this out."

"LaFontaine!" Perry hissed, "Laura does not need your pseudo psychology at this moment!" However, this had gotten Laura's attention and she propped herself up on her elbows, looking sternly at the Biology major.

"No, Perry, I appreciate your concern, but I want to hear what Laf has to say," she nodded toward Laf, encouraging them to continue.

"Well," Laf continued, "it seems like maybe you are the last to know this stuff because you _want_ to be the last one to know. You have a front row seat to everything Carmilla, and as far as investigative skills go, you've got us all beat by a mile. However, you have a disadvantage that Perry, Danny, and myself are not subject to; warm, fuzzy, romantic blinders." Laf paused, waiting to see if the message had sunken in, or if they needed to elaborate further. Laura's eyes blinked wide as Laf's words hit home, and suddenly the pain in her chest was being accompanied with a heaping side dish of steaming hot stupidity. She couldn't believe her blindness. The signs had been there all along. Especially after she found out about Will, how could she not have known!? _Jeese, Hollis, way to go. Some investigative journalist you'll make! "Yes, ladies and gentleman, it seems like the massive flooding is due to too much water!" Laura Hollis, Captain Obvious! It was right in front of me this entire time!_

"You're right," Laura groaned aloud, straightening herself to a sitting position once again.

"I am?" Laf chirped, sounding just as shocked as Perry looked.

"Yes, you're right," Laura continued, sighing gently and taking the tissue from Perry to blot away the last of the tears and wipe at her sniffling nose. "I didn't tell you guys, but the other night after Carm and Danny fought, I ran out into the woods behind the dorm and-"

"You did what!?" Perry shrieked, "Laura Hollis, how thoughtless of you! Those woods are so dangerous, who knows what could've been out there! And you could've ruined that beautiful gown with all that disgusting mud and dirt out there-"

"Perry," Laf interjected, "I don't think the cleanliness of Laura's clothes is our biggest concern right now," they offered a placating smile to the other redhead.

"Anyway," Laura carried on, smirking at a pouting Perry, "When I was out there, I ran into Will. Turns out…Carmilla isn't the only vampire at Hollis." Laf and Perry's jaws just about hit the floor.

"You mean Will too!?" Laf asked, looking more than mildly concerned.

"Yes," Laura nodded, "and I should've known exactly who Carmilla's mother was right then, because he told me Carmilla was his 'sister', as in they were made by the same woman. Why would there be _two_ vampires posing as students at Silas if the person responsible for these missing girls weren't also at Silas and in some kind of position of power to make that happen?"

"So," Laf spoke softly, and Laura's chest constricted as she knew exactly what was coming, "what are you going to do? I mean, you _love_ her…" Laf trailed off, not knowing exactly how to end that thought/question.

"I don't know," Laura stated matter-of-factly. "She said something about how her mother had done things to her, awful things, to make her cooperate. And, I mean, if she was really horrible, really complicit in these plans, wouldn't she have killed me as soon as she knew that I knew what she was? Or have Will do it that night I was alone in the woods? I mean, she stopped herself from hurting Danny because _I_ asked her not to, and she HATES Danny. She must care about me, at least a little bit right?" Laura's voice was quavering once again, and she knew her question was directed less at the two silent redheads sitting either side of her, and more at the aching, clawing in her heart that was pushing against her sternum, yearning to be in the room down the hall, close to the warm body of the one person her overactive, anxious brain was telling her she had no business wanting to be near right now.

"I have to talk to her," she whispered harshly, fighting back every screaming thought that was telling her Danny was right, Carmilla was a monster. Every ounce of self-preservation instinct she had should be telling her not to go anywhere near the vampire with clearly questionable motives and the world's creepiest brother that she had watched pulverize the bones in her friend's arm a day earlier. But all of those instincts, all of that rationale, was blurred by images of a warm smile, of remembrance of the soft embrace of Carmilla's body, holding her close, the tender touch of her hands as they danced and the way they held her so gently but with a strength that she knew would have protected her to the very end, and the deep look of love sparkling out at her from the starry black night of Carmilla's eyes. Yes, _love_. Laura knew it. She had seen it. She had felt it.

Suddenly she stood up, clearly startling the two redheads deep in thought on either side of her. She made her way swiftly to the door, their calls and questions lost on her. She felt it in every fiber of her being that the ache in her heart, the pull of it towards Carmilla, was the physical act of the old adage that misery loves company, and her wounded heart longed to be with its companion that she knew was just as torn, just as devastated. They needed to piece themselves back together. And they needed to do it _together_.


End file.
